Maiko: The Kiss
by Scooz
Summary: Sorry, couldn't think of a more original title, but it really says it all. This is my crack at Maiko and its history. I wrote this before the premiere aired, and I finally got around to posting it. R&R appreciated.
1. Mai

Please note, I originally wrote this BEFORE season 3 started, I just forgot to post it here before the premiere. A friend of mine complained that there were not enough good Maiko fanfics that didn't butcher the characters. Sorry if it sucks, it was not forced...but most of my Avatar stories have come to me, I haven't tried to write without being inspired first before.

While this started as Maiko, there is a lot of concentration on Mai because, I don't know much about her character. How did she go from being the shy girl in Zuko Alone to the deadly assassin we see her as now? So I did some research on her character and studied the new screenshots from The Awakening previews.

So I assume that a lot of her depressing attitude is attributed to a lack of Zuko for 3 years. I know I would be depressed, lol. But yea, there is definitely something between them, and this is my crack at what that might be.

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Maiko, part one 

Mai had spent most of her spring with Azula and Ty Lee, tracking down the Avatar and the fugitive Fire Nation royals, Iroh and Zuko. When the Fire Nation princess had first approached her, asking for her help, she was grateful to find anything that took her away from the quiet, dullness of Omashu. Besides, Mai knew better than to deny Azula what she wanted, but the last thing she was expecting was to be tracking down the boy who had been her only escape from the noble life of the Fire Nation. The boy who had saved her from becoming just like the rest of them.

Elegance, protocol, and politics were not exactly things that interested Mai when she was younger. In the abnormal shyness that plagued her in her youth, what she truly wished for was adventure, but that was not for Fire Nation noblility. She learned very early in the Royal Fire Academy for Girls that in the Fire Nation upper class was all a dance of half-truths and lies; that she was born into a world where trust did not exist and backstabbing your peers was socially acceptable as long as you were loyal to the Fire Nation and the Fire Lord.

The nobility was all a hypocrisy, she couldn't stand it, she hated it. That is where he came in, Zuko. He was nothing like the other children, nor even like his father and Azula; he was his mother's child. While he was not as quick to learn like his sister, when he put his heart into something, he fought and struggled to achieve his goals. Other spoiled children were lazy and gave up too easily, letting others do the work for them. She admired his persistence and his candidness was a refreshing change from the knavery she had come to expect from others.

It was his mother, Ursa, who had raised him like this. She had protected him, left him untainted by the trickery and deciet common to the courts. In shielding him from this corruption, she had essentially ruined his future in the eyes of many nobles, but Mai did not care. With Zuko, she could speak freely, knowing he would not seek to use it against her. Before she knew it, Mai found herself thinking of him often, wishing she could spend time with him more. She usually did not have much to say, but Zuko could talk for the both of them.

When Azula was not around, they would talk about their training. Mai's parents were trying to turn her into a lady. The young Fire Nation prince would laugh and tell her how silly that was. He could not comprehend things like etiquette, all he cared about was becoming a great warrior and some day a great leader, so that he could impress his father. That devotion, that loyalty he gave so freely to those he loved was something she craved in her youth, and had never recieved it from friends.

As they grew up together, they could barely hide their friendship, which had developed into something closer as they grew up. Zuko had barely changed, he was still adamant in his quest to gain his father's love, especially after his mother's disappearance. Mai, knowing the cost of any display of feelings, tried to be as supportive as she could without letting the others see, and awhile, it worked, more or less thanks to his Uncle Iroh. For a time, life seemed fine, it was the closest thing to happiness Mai thought she had ever experienced.

Then, when she least expected it, he was stolen from her. Zuko was banished by his own father to search for a non-existant Avatar. She felt abandoned, not by the banished prince, but by those who were glad to see him go. Her family, so eager to fall under the Fire Lord's good graces, praised Ozai for his decision. As week after week passed, she became more distant from others, throwing herself into the warrior training she had taken up years earlier. Ever since Zuko's talks about warriors, glory, and honor when they were kids, she wanted to join him in the hopes that she could drown away the dismal life of being noble born on the battelfield. That, and she knew that to become a hinderance, useless around Azula, would not bode well for her.

For nearly three years she worked, pushing herself to master as many forms of dagger mastery and projectiles as she could. This rare art would prove more useful in combat against both hand-to-hand fights, as well as against benders. As each day passed, the only solitude she could achieve from the dreadfully bleak lessons given at the academy was in practicing her combat skills. Soon, the past began to fade, and she lost touch with the shy girl she had once been years ago, trading it in for a more sarcastic, demeaning attitude to erase all that she once was. This would help her survive in the Fire Nation.

Several times she tried to convince her father to let her leave and travel, so she could start testing her skills on the battlefield. There was nothing to do at home. Maids cleaned, her father was paid handsomely by the Fire Lord, and everything in life was given to her on a whim. Life could not have been more boring. She wanted some action, something to make the time pass and maybe enjoy herself for once. Her father's disapproval was made apparent by a stream of shouts and complaints about how unbecoming a lady she was.

Never again did she bother to broach the subject, as her father found small ways to annoy her as he sought to ensure that she would never see battle. Life went on with all the same lackluster routines. As winter ended and spring returned, her family had been sent to the Earth Kingdom to claim Omashu in the name of the Fire Lord. For the first time in almost a year, Mai found herself thinking of Zuko. There were nothing but rumors to be heard of him and she wondered if he were still alive, if he were still the same Zuko or if the banishment had changed him. Had the corruption that plagued the Fire Nation finally touched him?


	2. Zuko

Maiko, part two

Not long after her family settled into Omashu did her old friend show up and offer her reprieve via a mission, a hunt. Find Iroh, and find Zuko. No problem, Mai had answered in her mind, letting herself feel a little excitement at a chance to see Zuko again. Part of her hoped that maybe he was still the same, if not a little world-weary, but for most of their journey throughout the Earth Kingdom, she doubted it and refused to let herself be disappointed. Now, the spring had passed, summer was on its way, and she was finally going to see him.

While taking over Ba Sing Se, the capital of the Earth Kingdom that had survived many sieges over many years, and all but ensuring the Fire Nation's victory, Mai found it hard to keep her mind off anything but Zuko. Would he remember her the way she used to be? Would he be able to accept what she had become? There was only one way to find out. The Avatar's friends had escaped, but Azula knew they would have no chance to catch them on their flying bison. They all decided to meet in the throne room. Azula and Zuko were already there when Mai and Ty Lee showed up. When their eyes met, his grew wide with surprise, but nothing else. It was hard to guage his reaction, so she kept her face passive, waiting for the moment when they could talk alone without interpution.

"Girls, you remember my brother, Zuko."

Ty Lee playfully jabbed Mai's shoulder, but she did not indulge her companion with the smirk she had last time. She was waiting for Azula to tell them take him away and imprison him, but instead she announced that all four of them were going to transport the traitor Iroh home to be judged. Relief and suspicion swept over her. She knew Azula did not trust Zuko, so why was she suddenly letting him off the hook like nothing this past spring had happened between them. Mai refused to let herself hope that Zuko and her would be able to start right back over where they left off. It could not be that simple, could it?

They did not see much of each other before they boarded the ship that was taking them back to the Fire Nation. He seemed so distant and lost in thought. She assumed he was coming to grips with his Uncle's imprisonment especially after spending three years together. She wanted to find the words to help him cope, to cheer him up, but she had been part of Azula's trio all summer to track him down and capture him to send him home as a traitor, would he trust her still? Mai wanted to find out, at least so that if he did hate her, she could just move on.

That night, she stood out on the deck, waiting for the guard she had sent to ask Zuko to join her to return. It was warm, the summer heat was approaching and the Firebenders' potency would increase as it always did. She had noticed it with Azula when they were kids, even when night turned into day, the princess' Firebending was always more deadly when the sun was visible. Would not be a bad time to speak with him, without the comfort of the sun?

The unmistakable metallic sound of a door opening made Mai turn around, expecting to see the guard she sent to tell her Zuko had rejected her request. Instead she saw the prince standing in the doorway, clad in Fire Nation armor. The image was so different from the one of him she had created in her head for the past few years. The shaggy hair, the angry glare, and that scar, she had heard about it from Azula, but this was the first time she had a chance to observe it up close. She didn't think it was ugly, rather, it had an edge to it that made him look dangerous, and she liked it.

"Prince Zuko," she greeted with a slight bow as she would to Azula.

"Come on, Mai. You don't have to do that," he insisted.

"Sorry, I forgot you were never fond of court intriuge," she said as she let a small smile escape her lips.

"You have been around Azula too long," he replied as he joined her on the deck. "So what is it you wanted to see me about?" His demeanor was so serious, yet she knew he was not upset or uncomfortable. He was adjusting, she could see it in his eyes, or eye really.

"Not much really. It's been a few years and I wanted to talk, find out what you have been up to all this time."

"I thought it was obvious what I was doing; searching for the Avatar so I could return home."

She sighed and leaned against the ship, looking out over the water. He was being stubborn, so Mai knew if she pressed him for real answers, Zuko would just get annoyed and storm off like he always had. This isn't what she wanted. She wanted him to be the outspoken boy he had been before. She wanted him to still feel what they had shared before his banishment.

"Is something wrong?"

Mai glanced over to see Zuko beside her, watching for her face to betray some semblance of emotion. She let him see some of her disappointment and nothing else. He seemed to understand.

"I am not what you were expecting, am I?" he asked.

"Not really. I figured you had changed, but I thought that you might still remember us."

"How could I forget? You were one of the closest friends I had growing up."

"That's not quite what I meant."

Realization dawned on him and he turned away from her, she thought maybe to hide his expression. What is it he has to hide? she wondered. Was the suggestion of them being together again so repulsive that--

"I'm sorry, Mai. I don't know what you want from me right now. It's not that I don't have the same feelings, it's just...a lot of things have changed since then, and I am different, you are different. Do we really know each other any more? How can we go back to the way things were?"

That was all she really needed to hear. Somewhere in there, whether he realized it or not, was the same Zuko from before. As candid and honest as he had always been. To her, it was not a matter of knowing each other, just filling in the gaps three years had put between them. She came up behind Zuko as he stared off into a place only his eyes could see, a knowing smile slipped across her face.

Mai reached around and put a hand on his marred cheek, bringing him back from whatever distant world he had been visiting. This surprised Zuko, but he did not pull back from her touch. Chances are he had barely had any true contact like this since his banishment, and she knew it must have had a greater impact on him than he was showing on the outside. She made him face her and their eyes locked. For once, she let him see it all. His reflected her own, if not in a more melancholic sense, but the feelings were still there and she felt her smile widen.

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

Rather than tell him what a dumb question that was, she gave him a reassuring answer. Their lips brushed lightly at first, Zuko all but unresponsive. Then, like a spark was ignited within him, she felt his lips pressed hard against hers. Mai could not hold back as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He was back, her Zuko was back. With Azula, she was able to see combat as she never had while living with her father, and with Zuko, she could be content with his trust in her and the feelings they shared. For the first time in a long time, she left herself hope that life might get better.

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No, there is no crazed, teen making out scene. I don't think that is ALL Maiko is, lol. So I tried to keep it light and tasteful since we don't know the depths of the relationship. Anything that makes Mai smile THAT much has gotta be serious, lol. R&R is appreciated. 


End file.
